Breaking Bad odds makers : spinoff to feature Saul Goodman

AMC and Sony Pictures Television on Wednesday confirmed the long-discussed spinoff, which will feature the popular supporting character from “Breaking Bad” in a one-hour prequel tentatively titled “Better Call Saul.”

Played by Bob Odenkirk, Goodman is the sleazy New Mexico lawyer whose clients include “Breaking Bad” antiheroes Walter White and Jesse Pinkman, who manufacture crystal meth.

AMC said the new series would focus on Goodman before he crossed paths with those drug czars. The network provided no further details.

You have to wonder what AMC’s motives are behind finally giving the go ahead for the Breaking Bad spinoff following the exploits of cheesy criminal lawyer Saul Goodman. Is it that Breaking Bad is coming to an end in just a matter of weeks and the cable network is looking for a series to fill the void it will inevitably leave behind? Or is it due to the recent decision to cancel The Killing a second time – just as the struggling series was finding its sweet spot – and needing to make up for it? Or does AMC just think a series spun off from Breaking Bad will be a hit and run for years and years?

You could argue for any of these reasons and I’m of the mind to think they all play a part in the final decision to go with the spin off, tentatively called Better Call Saul. THR reported AMC had reached a licensing agreement with Sony Pictures Television and was just waiting on final deals to be made with actor Bob Odenkirk, Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, and executive producer Peter Gould before getting a formal series order. Without Breaking Bad, The Killing, and, after the conclusion of its upcoming seventh season, Mad Men, AMC will be short three dramas. Better Call Saul would be a blessing to have.